Tag Archives: high school

Small High Schools

American high schools operate in much the same way today as they did 50 years ago; leaving most of today’s young people without the academic preparation they need to be successful in the information age economy. Nationally the graduation rate for urban students hovers at 50%. Of those students that do graduate and go on to college, nearly half require remedial courses. The traditional high school which typically has short class periods, detached subject areas, and teachers working alone in their classrooms may have worked at one time, but it is clear that it no longer meets the needs of … Continue reading →

A 21st Century Education

Despite the negative headlines there are a lot of positive things going on in American education. School systems and states are making major adjustments to help students, especially high school students, be prepared for college and the eventual entrance into the information age workforce. Some school systems are offering online classes that students can take to complete their requirements for graduation. Some of these classes are electives and not necessarily available in a traditional classrooms. Students who are in jeopardy of dropping out can utilize the online classes in order to obtain their diploma. Early entrance to college has been … Continue reading →

Sky High: A High School for Superheroes

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Did you ever feel pressure to be like your Mom and Dad? Most of the time those situations are always something like Mom and Dad are doctors, so of course their children should be doctors too. Or maybe your family has a business are you are naturally expected to carry on in your parents footsteps, regardless of whether or not that is what you want to do. So what do you do when your parents are two of the biggest superheroes on the planet? In the movie “Sky High” Will is facing the fact that he may never be a … Continue reading →

Online Learning

The first distance education program was offered in 1728 in America with schools in Europe (Gilbert 2001, 18). I would imagine that sending papers over the Atlantic would take months. Boy has distance learning come a long way! In today’s information age, online classes for specialized certificates, four year degrees, and masters programs are plentiful. Now students and instructors can live and work in different regions, but can still attend class together in “real-time.” Online learning is evolving and is no longer available only to college level students. Many online schools and courses are now available for the K-12 student … Continue reading →

High Schools that Work

The oldest and largest of the Southern Regional Education Board’s initiatives for school improvement is its program “High Schools that Work”. (HSTW) This initiative was established in 1987, and today over 1200 schools in 32 states are using the framework to improve education on the high school level. The 10 key practices of HSTW that impact student achievement are the following: High Expectations – expect the best in class and give students continuous feedback Program of Study – each student completes an academic core and concentration Academic Study – college prep curriculum applied to real world problems and projects Career/technical … Continue reading →

SAT or ACT test?

What are the SAT and ACT tests? The SAT and ACT tests are standardized tests that most high schools students take their junior or first part of their senior year. The SAT test is two parts. The first part tests Math Skills ranging from number skills to probability. The second part is the Verbal score (now called Critical Reading), which tests grammar, spelling, and reading comprehension, written essay. Subjects are scored on a scale of 200 to 800. A perfect score is 1600. The average score is 1000. The ACT test has four scores that are averaged for the students … Continue reading →